


Elemental

by dinoburger



Category: Khonjin House (Web Series)
Genre: Body Horror, Elemental AU, Elemental Magic, Gen, M/M, magical entities
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2018-08-18
Updated: 2018-09-04
Packaged: 2019-06-29 04:05:41
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 8
Words: 13,671
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/15721626
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/dinoburger/pseuds/dinoburger
Summary: Gino Fratelli arrives in a world where beings of different elements reside, trying to figure out how and why he's come to be.(Elemental AU, mostly focussing on the main cast of KH)





	1. Steam and Static

**Author's Note:**

> I didn't want to leave the fandom with that other fic as my last goodbye, hahahahaha
> 
> anyhoo, I don't think every chapter will be this long but hopefully I will get this thing moving along (and not forget about it gjsdhsd)
> 
> it's been a while since I've attempted a multi-chapter fic
> 
> the rating is prone to change on this one but I'm not thinking anything in this is going to be super hardcore, there may be violence and body horror in future chapters but that's about it.
> 
> although... there are possibly some Gilno-ish undertones here hahahaha
> 
> hope ya enjoy!
> 
> (PS, it's not integral to the plot but I added a piece of my own work to the end of this fic, so if it doesn't load don't worry about it. I've been posting more of my KH fanart on cantusemyfuckingdickanymore.tumblr.com if you're interested!)

The earth heaved and shuddered, splitting and billowing great clouds of heated gas into the starless, overcast sky. For any man of flesh, that volcanic heat would be unbearable, but the entity observing the tumultuous rocky shore was no mere man.

Among the deepest clouds of the night his body was perched, thick threads of static jumping and weaving together, bound by solid atmosphere of a purple-blue colour. From this too his clothes were shaped, a dashing suit and top hat to compliment his striking, moustachioed face. The crackling figure emitted a light that caught the clouds, flickering as he peered down with eyes of pure white energy.

With god-like force, rocks were broken into rubble, thundering and groaning. Beneath it all, he could hear an unholy howl from the gaping wound of the earth. He shivered, electricity rippling through his body as it sounded again, growing louder as it split wider. It made the being somehow apprehensive, even knowing no mortal creature could possibly make such a sound.

Between plumes of smoke, a red glow started to rise from the depths, blazing brighter and brighter as the guttural roars became clear, even under the thundering of the earth.

And then it emerged, crawling from that hole like a demon from hell. Its whole body glowed a hot, molten red, vivid veins of unfathomable heat pulsating under its skin, through its body. Where one might expect hair, magma oozed and dripped lazily from its skull, face wrinkled and contorted with strain.

It kneeled on the surface, its eyes a pair of slits, huffing and panting breaths of smoke while gradually the earth grew still and quiet. When the steam and smoke cleared a little more, the electric entity drifted down cautiously to investigate. As it kneeled there and its breath evened, the veins cooled and subsided, its glow becoming subdued. It relaxed, and he started to think that its body reminded him less of a demon and more of a cherub, with its gentle curvature.

Its hair settled into place, and it raised its head. He saw no malice in those eyes as they observed each other.

“…That certainly was an impressive entrance.” The spectre remarked, hovering close. “Who are you?”

The volcanic man uttered a hoarse, choking sound, no words finding them. Whether it was because they could not speak or were not able to, the other could not tell.

“Well, if you need a p-p-place to stay, there’s one not far from here, if you want to follow me?” he offered.

The volcanic man groaned softly, rising to their feet, seeming to get the message.

The electric being was truly like a ghost, barely touching the ground as he moved weightlessly up the hill. His new companion wasn’t taking it as easily, exhausted and heavy, stumbling and dragging their weight while the ghost paused to let them catch up.

The even streets of Nickville were more forgiving, roads deserted and empty at this late hour. The ghost materialised a pair of disembodied hands to open the door to the building, letting the volcanic man inside. A single light crackled on in the back, as if on its own when they entered.

The static man led his guest into the back without a hitch, the least flammable place he could think to put them being the bathroom. They didn’t mind at least, too worn out to care, the volcanic man sunk to their knees and curled up on the floor.

“I’ll send someone for you tomorrow, you just rest here.” The spectre explained, unsure if he’d been heard as the stranger seemed to pass out right away.

He pulled the door so that there was no more than a crack open still, the room dark except for the dull glow from the warm red body on the floor. With one last admiring glance, the spectre crackled and sparked back into the night.

* * *

The volcanic man awoke to the sounds of murmuring voices and footsteps. The door swung open, and a boy stood there. He held a stack of neatly folded clothes. A human being, with the most vivid red hair one could imagine.

“Gilmore wanted me to uh, bring you these. You know, uh, lightning guy? He’s my dad.”

The boy set the clothes down in front of them and held out his gloved hand. “I’m Khonjin, by the by.”

The volcanic man took it, and hesitated. “Uh… I… I was…” he mumbled “…Gino. Gino… Fratelli.”

Khonjin scoffed, shaking the residual heat from his hand. “You read that off the sign, or is it a coincidence?”

Gino frowned, Khonjin shook his head. “Whatever. Get dressed and I’ll be waiting for you.”

It wasn’t a perfect fit. Gino had to roll up the cuffs of the clean black pants and found the shirt too loose in places and too tight in others, but it was something. Better still, he’d cooled down enough for them not to burn up. He could hear Khonjin talking to someone further in the back, but couldn’t help a peek into the restaurant-sized kitchen.

Everything felt strange in the light of day, it had the sort of clarity he only thought possible in dreams, more crisp and vivid than he’d known reality to be.

He found Khonjin again with that someone else. They were taller, adorning a chef’s outfit and hat. Contradictory to the natural skin tone of the chef’s hands, his whole head looked as if it had been carved from marble save for a weedy moustache and dark eyes that widened slightly at the sight of Gino. He then settled into an easy smile.

“Gino, this is, uh, we call him ‘Gay Spaghetti Chef’. Because, that is, in fact, what he is.” Khonjin introduced.

“It’s’a always nice to see a new face around.” The chef welcomed.

“ ‘Gay Spaghetti’ huh? Ya don’t think that’s just a little too… literal?” Gino cocked their head, to which the chef leaned in with a wide, sly smile.

“At’a least I didn’t go and name’a myself after the restaurant.” He spoke in a lower tone that caught Gino off guard, then he straightened and laughed pleasantly. “I’m’a just teasing you, Gino. You call’a yourself whatever you feel’a most comfortable with.”

Gino blinked. “Wait, what about the restaurant?”

Spag and Khonjin glanced at each other.

“Hey, uh, why don’t you go out the front for a sec, read the big sign above the counter and tell me what is says.” Khonjin told him.

A little bewildered, Gino made their way towards the front. Somehow the longer he stayed here, the more that dreamlike sense of déjà vu hung over them, as if they’d imagine this place before. It was almost dizzying by the time they got to the front counter.

“…Huh.” Gino noted, the two boys following behind him. “So this place… ya dad owns it?”

“Oh, yeah! I think uh, guy owed him some money or something a few years back, but they gave him this place instead. It’s been a base of operations for a bunch of stuff.” Khonjin explained.

Gino looked at him for a moment, undeniably flesh and blood, with glistening deep eyes.

“…You ain’t a whole lot like him.”

“Hm? Maybe not, I am adopted. Or, well as he says I was ‘given to him by God’ or something, which is crazy-lightning-man talk for ‘adopted’.”

Gino nodded uncertainly. “Right.”

Khonjin casually rocked back on his heels. “Mmmh since you’re already staying here, and this is a pizzeria… you know how to make a pizza?”

* * *

Gay Spaghetti and Khonjin watched the newcomer as he stood there, glaring down at the kitchen counter. He hadn’t moved for an uncomfortable amount of time.

“Maybe… maybe he’a doesn’t really know how’a to make a pizza, maybe’a he’s embarrassed…?” the Spaghetti chef whispered to Khonjin. “If’a Gilmore’s right, he did just… come’a out of the earth… Why would he’a know what to do?”

“Give him a chance. What, you’re not scared that he’ll be better than you are you?” Khonjin joked quietly, to which Gay Spaghetti rolled his eyes.

“You’a know me, I make’a the best pizza around, I’a don’t get jealous.” He huffed.

Khonjin snorted sceptically but didn’t add anything else.

After another few seconds, Gino finally set to work. He made quick work of rummaging around the kitchen, through cupboards and shelves, acquiring what he needed. This wasn’t a man struggling to figure out what he was doing like it had seemed at first. Gino’s pace only sped up as he went through the steps, his audience watching in silent awe.

When he got to the dough, his hot hands filled the air with the scent of baking. He had to be quick to make sure the cheese wouldn’t stick to his fingers as they burned hotter and hotter. Once he’d finished his work, Gino stared at it for a moment.

“…I’m gonna try somethin’.” He announced. “You two stand back… no, further. That’s it, alright.”

Gino cleared his throat, rolled his neck and took a deep breath in. As he drew in breath, his skin burned brighter, the hot, glowing core in his belly seeping through his shirt.  When he breathed out again, a huge puff of smoky, volcanic air rushed out, obscuring himself and his work. Khonjin and Spag had to turn away as he continued, baking the pizza with the inhuman heat coming from deep inside him.

Gino coughed a few times after he was done, and once he was sure it was safe Spag carefully entered the kitchen again.

“W-wow. That’s’a not bad.” He commented.

“Ugh…Next time… I’m gonna use the oven.” Gino wheezed.

Gay Spaghetti delicately took a piece, trying not to burn his fingers and making sure it was cooked through.

“Is it all cleared up in there yet? How’s my pizza?” Khonjin called in from the doorway, stifling a few coughs himself.

“I’ll uh, bring it out for ya.” Gino called back, finding a box to carry his work in.

Meanwhile, Gay Spaghetti was taking his first, ginger bites. “Oh… Gino, this is good! This is’a fine’a pizza, you’a really gave it a very subtle, a’smoky flavour, very refined.”

“Heh, yeah? Glad ya think so…” a complimented smile crawled across his face, and the volcanic man seemed to glow that little bit brighter.

Khonjin was waiting impatiently outside, not wanting to get a lung full of smoke but not wanting to miss out.

Gino stepped outside proudly, with the box in his red hot hands. “Here ya go, one large--”

Before it promptly burst into flames.

“Shit.”

“MY PIZZA!” Khonjin screeched.

Once the flames had subsided, the box was a blackened husk. The solitary surviving slice had been lovingly consumed by the chef.

“I’m not doing that again.” Gino muttered bitterly.

* * *

“What’s gonna happen now?”

It was starting to get late at the pizzeria.

“I’a guess that’a the boss will want to hire you, nothing’a like a scary lava man to’a really spook his’a rivals off.” Gay Spaghetti mused. “He’ll be a’back when there’s enough’a static in the air for him to get comfortable.”

Gino examined the sky, there were some heavier clouds just rolling in. “Soon, then?”

Gay shrugged. In the calm of the late afternoon, as evening crept in, the chef too had become calm and quiet. Khonjin had returned to his father’s apartment for the day, and Gino had been occupying himself with looking around and cleaning the pizzeria. He wasn’t as productive as he would’ve liked to be, a lot of it was interspersed with long lengths of gazing out the window.

Gilmore was the sort of guy you couldn’t believe that you’d seen, the moment you stop looking at him. He had an ethereal quality that Gino hadn’t been able to appreciate that first night he’d met him. He felt anxious to see him again, anxious to see more of him.

Gay Spaghetti hadn’t been much for company without Khonjin in the picture, either. Gino wasn’t sure how to strike up a conversation, the chef didn’t hold interest in anything he had to say for very long. The energy had been sucked from the pizzeria, and time was dragging on.

Although he hadn’t said much, Gino couldn’t shake the feeling that the chef had been keeping an eye on him. Maybe that was no surprise, they weren’t quite used to each other yet.

Gino wasn’t even sure if he was used to himself. At his coolest state, his eyes and skin were still a faded red, almost like a sunburn, but perfectly even all over his body. It was like being covered in makeup, except he didn’t know what he expected otherwise. Still, his reflection startled him every time.

It was getting dark again when fat raindrops started to fall. The street lights came on outside, and as they flickered to life, something else flickered too.

Gilmore’s body was unaffected by the dimness of his surrounds, unaltered by whatever light and shade were cast over him, a solid, static image that wavered as raindrops passed over and through it. He stood there on the street.

Determined to talk with him as soon as possible, Gino made his way outside. The torrents of rain coming down over him hissed into steam.

“Ah, how nice to see you again…” Gilmore greeted. “…What was your name?”

“Gino, Gino Fratelli. I know, it’s the same as the pizzeria…”

“It must be destiny. I thought it was, on the night that I met you… It’s nice to hear your voice for the first time.” Gilmore admired, with surprising fondness.

As Gino stood there, water dripped from him and disappeared back into the clouds of mist blowing off his skin. “I uh, was wondering what you… I dunno, wanted from me. Like, how can I pay ya back?”

“You don’t owe me anything, Gino. Feel free to stay at the p-pizzeria as long as you want. What I… believe, is that, is that we have a p…pur-… a reason for being here, for being the way we are. My reason was to find you, and others like you.” He said, his words like a cold wind between sheets of water. “I know you will find your reason too, Gino. Meanwhile, I need living souls like you to mind my worldly possessions while I drift… I’m afraid I can’t stay anywhere too long.”

“I’ll… take care of it then.” Gino accepted.

“Good. Khonjin too, if, if you could look out for him, I would be grateful.”

Gino nodded. “Okay, I’ll make sure I do.”

“Thank you…” he breathed.

The span of silence was filled with the sound of the storm, pouring over the streets around them. The two of them and the rain, engulfing everything in sight.

“Gino… I feel, comp, compelled to tell you something.” The gaze of Gilmore’s flickering form dropped to the ground. “On a night much like this one, I was running through the street. Some… mobsters from a rival gang were chasing me down, and this time I had no backup. I tried to escape them through a field, and that’s when it hap-happened.”

“A bolt of lightning struck me down, impossibly powerful enough to disintegrate my entire being. I became nothing but energy. I had no idea why, or how such a thing could have come to me, but I realised it was a second chance. I had been granted a different life, a new task.”

Gilmore looked up at him again. “Maybe you are a lost soul too, or maybe not, but I think this is imp-important. I don’t know if you believe in any sort of God, but I think that He needs us for something.”

Gino swallowed.

The shimmering man tilted his head back to examine the skies above them. “…I must be off. I enjoyed talking to you Gino. We’ll see what the future holds.” In a streak of light, he vanished back into the clouds, up and out.

The remaining man stared up at the clouds, swearing to himself that maybe that ripple of light could be his ghost, travelling through the blanketed atmosphere.

* * *

Any scrap of daylight left was now barely a whisper as Gino re-entered the building. He wasn’t nearly as wet as someone standing in the rain ought to have been, but his clothes had still managed to absorb a fair bit of water.

Gay Spaghetti was waiting for him at the counter. “I’a wouldn’t get too worried about’a what Gilmore says, he’s’a always got’a his head in the clouds, not’a just in the literal way.” He sighed. “I’a don’t know if he was’a worse when he was alive or’a… afterwards.”

“Yeah, the guy’s pretty fuckin’… intense, I’ll give him that.” Gino admitted.

“What about you then, Gino?” Spag asked.

“What about me?” he echoed.

“What’s’a your story? Where did’a you come from? How… how long’a were you trapped under the earth?”

His brow furrowed. “I… I don’t know.”

“Gino Fratelli… who are you?”

“I wish I knew.”

 

 


	2. Space and Spaghetti

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> WARNING: we got some body horror happening in this chapter, so take heed :^O
> 
> ghhck I hope you don't mind, this one is a little heavy on dialogue ; n ;
> 
> I also tweaked the title 'n shtuff because I want to actually make things!!! coherent and sensible!! @ME.

The next day was a bright and sunny one. Gino woke up to find the chef not in the kitchen, but sitting out front in a booth by the window, bathing in a patch of sunlight. He was sitting upright, his eyes closed and his face vacant and meditative.

“Mornin’ Spag.” Gino greeted, getting nothing but a hum from the chef in return.

He’d gotten most of the soot stains on the counter and the kitchen cleaned off, but Gino checked again anyway just to make sure. As he’d rubbed off the last few little spots out, Khonjin arrived.

The boy's posture was wilted, and he had a heavy scowl directed at his feet as he stormed up to the front.

“Uhh… hey.” a puzzled Gino said.

“Hi.”

Helplessly, Gino shot a look over at Spag who was still sitting, swaying gently from side to side in that patch of sun.

“...Hiya sweetie.” he eventually mumbled.

Khonjin sat at the front counter with his head hung, silent.

“Somethin’ on ya mind?” Gino asked hesitantly.

“All clear skies today.” Khonjin commented bitterly.

“‘S nice weather, huh?”

“Gilmore is gone. No clouds, no dad.” his frown deepened. “He barely said anything to me when he was here.”

“Ah.”

Khonjin covered his face with his hands and groaned.

“Hey Spag? You wanna start a pizza goin’ or somethin’?” Gino called across the counter.

Unaffected by the tension hanging over them, Gay Spaghetti had a long, lazy stretch, rolled back his shoulders and then hopped up. He seemed to radiate a new sort of energy in his beaming expression.

“I’m’a on it!”

Gino turned back to his unhappy customer. “Kid, I wouldn’t worry about it too much. I’m sure he’ll be back before ya know it.” he reassured.

Although that reassuring attitude seemed to melt away as Khonjin dragged his fingers down his face, stretching those deep, glistening hollows of his eyes unnaturally.

“It’s not fair… he just goes away for weeks and weeks and I have no idea where he is, or when he’ll be back.” Khonjin griped as he clawed at his sockets, those distressed chasms opening wider and the darkness inside them so absolute that it left spots in Gino’s vision.

"Uhh... t-take it easy kid..." he tried weakly, but Khonjin was getting too worked up for it to matter.

“He said he’d take care of me, but he _lied!_ ” he wailed. “He fucking lied to me! I’m not okay with that!” tears pooled and dripped from his warped expression.

“IT’S NOT FAIR GINO!”

As the condition of Khonjin’s face worsened light surrounding his head distorted into a vivid halo of broken colour. Gino had to step back, it was as if all the oxygen in the room were being sucked away, and his hearing became muffled as if his ears were filled with cotton. Those dark pits were so wide and twisting that all that remained were strips of over-stretched flesh.

Khonjin’s entire head seemed to become one twisted hole, consuming itself and leaving a gaping void. Gino had to retreat even farther as it drained the heat from the room. Feeling his volcanic skin grow cold for the first time was terrifying, he fled as patches began to cool down and go dark here and there.

He stumbled back into the kitchen, shaken. “S-spag we have a, situation out there.” Gino stammered, rubbing the bruise-like splotches on his arms.

Gay Spaghetti, standing over a big boiling pot of pasta, turned off the heat.

“Let me’a guess, he’s’a having one of his tantrums again.” Spag set aside the spoon he was stirring with and made his way dutifully out on the scene.

It must have been deathly cold out there, Gino could see the chef’s breath from where he watched in the doorway. Khonjin was hunched over on his barstool, a vivid ring of distorted, fluctuating light around him.

“I’m’a sorry sweetheart.” Spag offered softly, his voice sounding like coming from a deep tunnel as he sat beside Khonjin and placed a hand on his arm. “I’m’a here for you now.”

Wordlessly, Khonjin shifted to rest against the chef’s chest. Reality twisted dangerously in the aura around the void, but Gay remained still. They were both still.

Slowly, little yellow buds emerged from the chef’s clothes. Thin, green stems snaked and sprouted leaves. Little yellow flowers popped open, bunches of them gathering through the buttons of his uniform, the sleeves of his shirt and one even bloomed on the end of his moustache.

While plants wrapped around them, binding them together, spilling onto the counter and floor, the oxygen returned to the room. Gradually, the void cleared away, the spots in Gino’s vision clearing until Khonjin’s face had returned, relaxed and soft.

The warm sunshine restored life to the air, Gino coming out from the door, awed at the scene filling with plants and flowers.

“You two… you’re…”

“Mh-hm?” the chef smiled.

“Like you and Gilmore?” Khonjin finished. “You didn’t think you were the only ones with powers, did ya hot-shot?” he smirked.

“You’re’a not’a so cool.” Spag teased.

“...Guess you got a point there.”

* * *

Khonjin begrudgingly set to work ripping out weeds from between the floorboards and sweeping up plant matter while Spag and Gino recovered from the mishap.

“He’s’a gonna be’a fine. Khonjin just needs a moment sometimes to’a, let out his frustrations.”

“Eh, fair enough.” Gino shrugged. “It is a little, uh, freaky but whatever he needs.”

“It’s’a really out of this world, huh?” Spag remarked. “Reminds me of’a funny story Gilmore told me, about how he found him.”

“Oh?” Gino prompted, intrigued.

Gay laughed. “I’a dunno how true this is… But apparently, one day the boss was way, way up high on’a the clouds…”

_...There was nothing but purest, clearest blue in all directions from the fluffy bank of clouds. It never ceased to fill Gilmore with a sense of wonder and tranquility, the sheer height and space stretching far, far out._

_He’d sometimes watch planes go by, they’d come startling close on occasion, or at night he would lie on his back and stare up into space. He would stare up until he almost felt he would fall out into that deep, endlessly dark abyss._

_At this height, he didn’t expect to see anything much above him except the sky, however on this crisp blue morning he spotted the smallest speck way up and out in the distance._

_As the morning drew on, he noticed it falling, getting incrementally bigger. Gilmore eventually rose to his feet and made chase, following this piece of space debris along the cloud banks. Luck was in his favour as it had been a particularly cloudy day, he had plenty of space to run across._

_Gilmore could make out a spot of the most vivid red as it descended, taking shape in his vision until he could see it become more human. A boy, fallen from the heavens and sinking to the clouds._

_Gilmore spent hours in pursuit, so worn down by the end he was shaking, the sky changing colours hinting at evening. He held out his newly generated arms to let Khonjin’s form drift into them._

_That night, he diligently carried the boy back to the earth, laying him down in his apartment..._

“...and’a after that, the boss’a took him in as his son.” the chef concluded.

“...So I guess that’s what “given to him by god” means.”

“Yup.”

Gino scratched his chin. “He uh, know how he got up there in space?”

Spag shook his head. “He’s just’a like you, suddenly he’a woke up one day and he was on earth. No memories before that.”

“I guess that answers that then.”

“Hey, Spag,” Khonjin butted in, “didn’t you start making a pizza a while ago?”

“Oh? Uh yeah! That’a might’a be ready by’a now…”

“Sweet!” tossing the broom aside, Khonjin headed into the kitchen.

Gino’s brow furrowed sceptically.

Sure enough, a moment later he heard a yell of indignance and what sounded like a large pot of spaghetti being shoved onto the floor.

* * *

Khonjin made it home that evening with his head still throbbing from the ordeal. Headaches weren’t unusual for him, particularly after an outburst like that, but this one had a vengeance.

It only got worse as he got ready for bed, peeling off his clothes and finally throwing himself into the sheets. His face felt flushed with a feverish heat, and he tossed and turned uncomfortably for a while until he gave up with a sigh, wandering drowsily into the bathroom.

Khonjin splashed water onto his face, letting the excess drip back into the sink.

He looked up at his reflection, not surprised by how dishevelled he looked. He blinked blearily at himself.

Khonjin had always had these dark, empty pits where his eyes should be, it didn't affect his vision in the slightest, in fact he could probably see more clearly through them than most. So he found it very strange, after blinking a few more times, that there seemed to be the slightest hint of colour in them.

It seemed to glow, as his headache pounded, with a sort of heat that had never existed there before.

He splashed more water on his face, waited a moment, just breathing, just focussing on the darkness as he pressed his palms against his eyes.

When he looked back at last, it was gone.


	3. Sun and Shore

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> exposition time bby B)
> 
> (edit: it's hilarious to see what canon Deja is like compared to this speculative AU version of him)

It was on a different night, on a different shore, of dark water that only just caught the soft light of early evening, glinting under a crisp, gibbous moon. On a shelf above the shore, dressed sharply in a suit with gold accents, an older gentleman was taking a stroll. His head was almost entirely obscured by a brilliant halo of light, with the smallest tongues of fire licking at its wavering edges.

As he watched the waves bobbing up and down, he noticed something in them… or perhaps on them. A figure, with both their feet planted on the water’s surface as it rocked and swayed beneath them. In spite of the shifting tides, they managed to keep their balance and stayed upright.

Curious, the old man made his way down to the beach to get a better view. However, as the waves rose higher and higher, the mysterious figure was hidden from sight, vanishing as the tide subsided once more.

Unsure of what he’d seen, he scanned over the water, waiting to see if they’d reappear, listening to its sweeping lulls. As waves curled and crashed onto the sand Deja had to step back, the foam spreading over the shore almost touching his pristine leather shoes, but something else tumbled out from those waves too.

A small boy, with a puffy blue afro matched by a blue shirt with black swimming trunks. He spluttered a few times, while the older man leaned down to offer a steady hand.

“Are you quite alright?” he asked.

Smack looked up and his eyes flashed white, a vivid reflection of the moon caught in his pupils with Deja’s soft, golden light pouring over his face.

The old man’s angular features, just visible within that golden halo, made him somehow appear both gentle and stern.

Smack pushed himself to his feet. “I’m, I’m okay. Uh...”

“You have some very fascinating abilities, I’ve not seen an elemental of quite your type before.” Deja remarked, interested. “Do you walk on water often?”

“Sometimes. I practice.”

“Ah, practice makes perfect after all, does it not?” he paused. “...If you would like to take a walk with me, perhaps you could tell me a little more? I have a few insights that may be of interest to you…”

Smack shrugged.

Many evenings would pass this way, with the younger returning to the beach and the older watching over him. Deja would take note of how the lunar cycles would affect the other's abilities, offering advice on how to better control his powers. It wasn't long before Deja took Smack in as an apprentice, learning everything there was to know about being an elemental.

As well as this, when Smack was in Deja’s presence, he found he could absorb his energy and become more powerful, something the gentleman was only further fascinated by.

Deja’s house wasn’t far from the beach, it was strange but homely with some rooms mismatched, from different fashions and times, some antique and some simply outdated and worn. But it was clean and cozy.

He would lead Smack into a small living area for tea and biscuits with odd armchairs. In front of them was an old wooden coffee table with ornate carvings and a fine, white table cloth, and between was a little side table with a vase of purple flowers and a radio. From somewhere in the room, Smack could hear a clock ticking.

“You may have been born with your abilities, but not every elemental would have come across theirs in quite the same way.” Deja began. “In fact, the way one’s powers manifest too vary greatly from elemental to elemental, rarely do you find two that bare close similarities.”

“One may be born with them, but they also may be dormant, only to be triggered by a certain event, or granted by completely different forces altogether. For example, my family line has carried the torch of the solar element for generations. When the previous carrier has passed on, the next in line will begin manifesting these powers… I suppose once our line has run out that power will simply disperse back into the universe, or perhaps attach itself to a new line of souls. I do not know.”

“You, however, Smack, have no such thing to worry about." he reassured, "My circumstances are not common.”

Nodding, the younger reached over to grab a few more biscuits off the table, letting Deja talk.

“What each elemental does have in common is that we each draw our power from a force in the universe, there are three distinct categories pertaining to which particular ones. The biggest group is those of terrestrial forces - of the earth, sea and atmosphere, the second being the cosmic forces - those of space, stars and galaxies and lastly, manufactured forces, of machines and power cultivated by man - by far the most rare, as human beings have only existed so long and their scale of influence pales at all else.”

“We are, of course, cosmic elementals, often considered to be the most powerful... but I would not underestimate any elemental who knew their craft, all have strengths in a variety of areas.”

While Deja rambled, Smack dunked another biscuit in his tea, swinging his legs.

“Then there are the physical attributes of how one channels their element, a raw elemental is made entirely of their element, a controlled elemental may be able to change certain parts of themselves into their element at will, or have it otherwise surrounding or coursing through their own body. A passive elemental is generally more in touch with their environment, rather than being centralised to themselves.” he continued. “Like all classifying systems, even this can have exceptions and may not always be a binary description. I would place you between a passive and controlled elemental, considering your night vision but also your control over the tides…”

“Cool. Uh…”

“Yes Smack?”

“Where’s your bathroom?”

“Hm? Just upstairs and to the right.”

“Thanks.” Smack shoved the last of his biscuit into his mouth and gave a muffled “be right back” as he scurried off.

Deja sighed, taking a long sip of his tea.

* * *

Elsewhere, Gay Spaghetti decided to check in on his boyfriend that morning, especially since the outburst yesterday. Khonjin’s moods were his own worst enemy sometimes, Spag knew all too well. When he’d gotten the door unlocked with the spare key, he noticed that none of the lights had been turned on.

“Hello…? Sweetheart?” Spag called, hearing a moan come from the bedroom in response.

Khonjin was curled up on top of the sheets, half dressed as if he’d attempted to get up but ultimately collapsed back into bed. His white shirt was half buttoned up, black pants and socks. His skin was clammy and flushed.

“H...hey…” he croaked. “I… I don’t think I can come out today…”

“Ah, that’s’a okay honey, you’re’a really running a fever.” the chef fussed, touching the smaller boy’s forehead. “But’a I’ll look after you.”

“No no, you go do… chef stuff, I’ll, I dunno, sleep it off…” Khonjin dismissed, but Gaylord wasn’t having it.

“There’s’a no way I’m’a gonna let you be all sick and’a miserable on’a your own. Besides, such a sweet and’a wonderful boyfriend deserves a little special treatment, huh?” Spag grinned, planting a kiss just above Khonjin’s nose, making him laugh and bringing a smile to his eyes.

“Alright, alright I give up. Gimme that good TLC Spaggers.”

“Now, that’s’a what I like’a to hear.”


	4. Smoke and Sickness

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> :^)

Gino found it strange that day when there was no sign of Gay Spaghetti anywhere in the pizzeria. Their usual customer didn’t arrive either. It wasn’t until a loud, high whistle from outside drew him into the street and Gino saw the chef.

Spag had his arms folded and deep concern scrawled into his face.

“What’s goin’ on?” Gino asked.

“It’s’a Khonjin. He’s… very feverish, it’s’a only getting worse and worse.” he explained. “I tried’a all sorts of medicine and’a remedies but… nothing works.”

Gino mirrored his pose. “Anything I can do ta help?”

“Actually, a’yes, there is’a one thing I would like’a to try. Follow me.” 

* * *

Spag took him off on quite a walk.

On their journey, Gay had picked up and handed Gino an assortment of wood scraps from broken furniture, sticks and branches. The chef was now marching him up a steep incline, to the top of a cliff by the ocean.

“You… still haven’t… told me what... this plan of yours is.” Gino puffed.

“We’re’a going to call’a the boss.” the chef told him.

“Huh?” he tilted his head back to study the sparse expanse of blue sky above them. “There’s hardly a cloud up there…”

“Doesn’t matter. We’re’a going to make’a our own.” he said matter-of-factly.

“Whaddya mean?”

“Gino, you breathe’a big clouds of smoke. If we can’a get one big enough, a’Gilmore can just step right’a out onto it.” Gay clarified.

Gino’s brow raise hopefully. “You think that’ll work?”

Spag flashed him a grin. “Only one’a way to find out.”

When they got to the top, Gino dropped the wood onto the ground and planted his hands on his hips. “How d’ya want me ta burn this shit then? With my hands? Or should I like… blow on it?”

Spag cocked his head. “...You’re’a the lava elemental, shouldn’t a’you know?”

Gino grimaced with embarrassment. “Um, um okay. Uh...”

“Wait.” the chef interrupted. “You have that’a big, hot, glowy, core, in here.” he pointed to his belly. “That’ll work’a the best.”

“So… should I put it under my shirt?”

“Mm, no. Try’a eating it.”

Gino winced, disgusted. “Ya want me ta eat it?!”

“I’m’a guessing it’ll be’a the most controlled, efficient’a way to do this, yes.”

The volcanic man wrinkled his nose at the pile of wood. “...ya serious?”

“GINO!” Spag snapped suddenly. “NEWS’A FLASH, BUDDY! But you’re not a human’a being! You’re’a made of red’a hot LAVA! You came’a out of the earth for’a pity’s sake, you’re a small oven of a man!” the chef ranted, exasperated. “You are not gonna die’a from eating a bit of wood.”

“Okay, okay, I’ll do it.” Gino complied, sitting beside the pile.

It was a lot less unpleasant than he expected, the sheer amount of heat inside him broke down each piece easily. Soon there was a steady stream of smoke billowing from his mouth and nose.

Once it’d gotten started, Gay Spaghetti stuck his fingers in his mouth and let out a long, loud whistle into the open.

To further feed the embers, Gino intermittently sucked in deep breaths of air, breathing out thicker clouds of smoke.

The plumes left sooty stains across the horizon as they floated out.

Gino kept stuffing wood scraps into his face while Gay Spaghetti continued whistling, occasionally inhaling smoke and needing to stop and cough but otherwise undeterred. 

* * *

Gilmore’s long, curved nose twitched from the spot he’d been dozing, lying on his back with one leg crossed over the other. There was the distinct scent of smoke in the air, emanating from somewhere not too far off. The next thing he noticed was a whistling sound.

Curious, the static man pulled himself upright and twisted to peer over the clouds.

There was an ashen trail of smoke reaching his way, coming from a tiny pair of figures below. The stark, pale face of the chef and the blazing red of the volcanic man were unmistakable.

Gilmore swung his legs around, waiting for the trail to get closer. He could have jumped from there, but the thought of missing somehow and instead plummeting into the sea was unappealing to say the least. He knew what happens to electricity in large bodies of water, and experiencing his entire, living body being dispersed into nothingness was not a fate he wanted to test.

He first gingerly prodded the smoke with his foot, seeing if he could gain purchase. Once he was sure Gilmore zapped downstream in a streak of light. The entity was soon sitting right in front of them, balancing on top of the billowing cloud with ease.

“Hello boys, what seems to be hap-happening here?”

“It worked! It’a really worked!” Spag cried.

Gino could only make muffled noises of surprise though mouthfuls of ash and smoke and debris.

“We’a needed your’a help with’a Khonjin, he’s gotten very sick. We’a dunno what to do.” Spag informed.

“Sick?” Gilmore echoed. “...My boy hasn’t been sick a day in his life, not once since I first held him in my arms…”

“Never…?” the chef repeated, surprised.

“Never.” A scowl soured his expression. “I don’t know how you could have let this happen. My son was a gift from heaven, incorrup-uptible, and you two… you p-p-poisoned him!” Gilmore crackled dangerously.

Gino’s eyes were wide and nervous, Spag shrunk back. “I-I’a didn’t mean to…” he whimpered.

“I entrusted him with you two, and you’ve made him ill! How could you have neglected him like this?!” Gilmore raged, flaring up and becoming jagged at the edges.

“N...neglected…?”

“ _I should never have trust you dirt-dwelling scum with my little angel…!_ ” he seethed, spitting white light in all directions.

“Now hold on a minute!” Spag defended. “I haven’t’a neglected him one day since we got together! I’ve’a been by his side, every moment, no’a matter what he was’a going through. You weren’t there for _any_ of it!” he retorted.

“I didn’t need to be, I’ve been watching over him!”

“OH REALLY?! Then did you _even know_ what happened the other day, after you’a left? After you _ignored_ your “little angel son”? _I_ was the one who calmed him down, _I_ was the one who comforted him! I was there, trying to help him when he fell ill!” the chef stood his ground.

“You think you’re’a so high and mighty, up in those clouds?” Spag laughed sharply. “I’a knew you in life Gilmore, you were a bully and a crook, but’a all that influence you had died with you. You’re’a not a god, and we’re’a not’a your servants!”

Gilmore just stared at him, taken aback.

Gay Spaghetti took a deep breath. “...I have been alive for’a thousands of years, I’ve’a taken’a many forms, witnessed many things. But you? You’re nothing, you’re not half the man you think you are, because what I’ve’a learned is that’a human compassion is the biggest, most’a rewarding thing a’someone can have. I will love your son, and I will help him, even if you won’t. But I will not let you bully me anymore.”

There was a pause, Gilmore and Gino both taking in all the information that’d spilled out while the chef was ranting.

“Y-you’re… th-th-thousands of years old, and you’re dating my little boy?”

“I-it’s not’a as bad as you make it sound!” he added hastily. “I’m’a not like some grody old man, in’a human terms I’m’a only about as developed as a boy his age, I’m’a still pretty young! In that sense.” Spag elaborated.

“...Right. I see.” Gilmore closed his eyes, sighing. “I’m… sorry.”

Spag blinked a few times. “What?”

“You’re right, I haven’t been around as of-often as I should, and I shouldn’t take it out on you two.” he admitted, with startling sincerity. “This… this was my second chance. I want to be a better p-p-person. I don’t, I don’t exp… expect you to forgive me. I know, whatever you do… you have a better idea of how to help him than I do. So, good luck.”

“Th...thank you.”

Gino was still smoking like a chimney the whole walk downhill, but he did manage to get his voice back.

“You’re really thousands of years old?”

“Mh-hm. Possibly much, a’much older than even I know. It’s’a hard to keep’a track of time, in some forms.”

“Whoah…”

“I… I still don’t get it though.” the chef spoke wistfully. “You… you’re so very, very human Gino. You even mistake _yourself_ for a human! It’s’a… it’s crazy that you can just’a come out of nowhere and make it seem’a so easy, that you just _know_ a’what to do, what to say…”

He trudged downhill, hands shoved into his pockets. The grass he trod upon became thick and overgrown as he went, coming up around his knees and making Gino stumble a little.

“And me? I’ve’a been alive for all’a this time… and… it’s so hard. It’a took me so long to become a convincing’a human being, and I’a still don’t know if I’m’a doing anything right.”

The volcanic man had to wade through the grass to get closer to the chef. “Hey, you just did that whole like, speech about compassion and shit. Like, if that doesn’t show some understandin’ of human nonsense I don’t know what will. I mean actin’ like, you know, some guy is one thing, but you kinda… get it. And you know how ta stick by someone, and stick by what ya know, even when shit gets super fuckin’ freaky. I’d say that kinda stuff makes some pretty good human traits, right?” Gino elbowed him affectionately, getting a little smile out of the chef.

“Thanks Gino…”

They made their way through the taller grass back onto even ground as they reached the bottom of the hill.

“...I still’a think, there’s just something about you… I don’t know. I feel like’a you must have lived up on the surface, once, but for all the time I’ve’a been alive, I’ve never seen you here before. You could’ve been’a down there for even longer than that… maybe even a million years before you came up here.” Spag contemplated.

Gino felt slightly nauseous thinking about it.

* * *

Khonjin tossed and turned and writhed. The heat in his face was spreading through his body, becoming unbearable. It pounded in his skull and twisted in his guts. It felt like something was reaching inside him and tearing him apart from the inside out.

He whined and drooled, choking back bleary tears, squeezing the pillows.

Spag would be back soon, Spag would fix it.

He mumbled his partner’s name into the damp fabric, deliriously hoping for some relief.

But to no avail. A hot, prickling sensation was building somewhere in the empty holes of his eyes, starting to unravel against his will.

“N...no… not again…”

Sure enough, as Khonjin staggered to the bathroom to check his reflection, trying to hold his head together with one hand, he could see his own flesh peeling apart and the void gaping through. But instead of the complete and impenetrable darkness he’d always seen before, two vivid, glowing points of magenta light stared right back, through his own grotesquely misshapen sockets.

It was as if some other entity were wearing his face, like a mask.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> ;^)


	5. seeing red.

Khonjin eventually managed to drag himself off the bathroom floor and onto the couch. The best he could do was lie there and wait for the worst to be over. 

His vision swam, through mangled sockets he could make out his own fingers, digging into the couch cushion. He couldn’t tell if the dark spots blinking into his sight and staining his skin were a trick of the light or something else. Even trying to squint wouldn’t make them go away.

No matter how he moved his hand, those spots were only growing, absorbing all light in spaces where before was aching flesh. The void was bleeding out through his clothes too.

This was new, this was… bad.

His hand was going numb. Then his arm. Patches of his belly and chest too were being eaten by the abyss inside him. The rushing in his ears was familiar.

But even that was drawn away from him with the rest of reality.

What remained was dark opening in his shape.

And then, from that void, something emerged.

* * *

 

Gay Spaghetti and Gino reached the streets of Nickville once more without a hitch. 

“I’m gonna go hold down the fort, you go check on Khonjin.” the volcanic man told him. “I’ll give ya a call when I get to the pizzeria.”

“Roger that!”

The two split off in different directions, the chef hurrying down to Khonjin’s apartment for the second time that day.

* * *

 

The void stretched as someone bigger came through, sealing shut in their wake. That brilliant, red hair was quite the same, and their large, bumpy nose, but so little else was.

They stood in the dim apartment, adorned in white and light yellow clothes, hands flexing in dark red gloves before curling into triumphant fists.

An ugly smile curled across their features as they bellowed out a maniacal laugh.

* * *

 

Gay Spaghetti fumbled with the keys as he got to the apartment door. Finally, he twisted them into the lock. It clicked open.

“Honey, I’m’a home!” Spag chirped.

No answer.

Figuring his partner had probably fallen asleep, the chef stepped out into the dim room. He tiptoed to the bedroom, only to find it empty.

The place seemed deserted.

“Hm.”

Spag reasoned that maybe Khonjin had gotten better after all, and had left to look for them at the pizzeria. He picked up the home phone and dialled in the number.

It rang a few times.

Then someone picked up.

“Helloooo?” a familiar, yet odd-sounding voice sang.

“Oh, Khonjin! You’re’a okay.” he exclaimed with relief. “If he’s not’a there already, Gino’s a’coming your way. He might’a even make you a pizza to cheer you up!”

“Will he? That sounds nice…” the voice purred.

“You would not’a believe what we’a went through today. I got into this’a big argument with’a the boss, it was crazy!” Spag chatted.

“Yes, that would be pretty crazy.” the voice agreed. “By the way…”

“Mh-hm?”

“How’s Shelby doing?”

“Oh, you know her, she’s’a good.”

“Really?”

“...No, I’a don’t know who you’re talking about.” Spag confessed.

He jumped as a loud, garbled crackling noise emitted from the receiver, before the line went dead. Spag frowned, slowly setting it back down in its cradle.

Something about this felt very wrong.

* * *

While heading up the street to the pizzeria, Gino’s heart skipped as someone walked out of the glass doors and onto the pavement ahead. He’d sworn he’d locked up before, but all the excitement must’ve distracted him.

Worse still, the sight of this guy made his stomach plummet.

They were tall. Very tall to the petite lava elemental. Red hair, pale clothes. Their expression was hard to read, with heavy, sunken eyes under thick brows.

Gino’s pace slowed the closer he got, until he was standing in front of them.

“I… do I know you?” Gino asked doubtfully.

“I don’t know.” they replied, in a voice as smooth as butter. “You don’t happen to be Gino Fratelli, do you?”

His chest felt tight. There was definitely something about this guy that seemed… wrong.

“What.. what sorta dumbass question is that?” Gino spat.

“I was just asking, besides, I hardly recognised you like that-”

“And what the hell were you doin’ in my fuckin’ restaurant?!” He shouted over them.

“...Getting a pizza?” Pent chuckled. “I really wasn’t expecting you to be up here, not after I put you so far down in the dirt. But I guess you wriggled your way out like a worm.”

His legs felt weak and Gino stumbled back, a wave of that dizzying deja vu washing over him again.

Those vivid, magenta eyes gleamed down at him. “How long did it take you to make it out? Must have taken some time. A few years? Decades? Centuries?” they sneered. “I won’t play dumb with you now - it’s a waste of my time. We both know you deserved it, being crushed under the earth, unable to escape, unable to  _ die _ .” Pent hissed, not letting him get too much space between them.

“But here you are. You’re even more of a freak now than you were before.”

Gino had been trying not to think about all the time he’d spent there in the earth. He’d once been made of flesh. He’d once been human, but Pent had taken him and thrown him down, down, down beneath the ground.

It was claustrophobic, all consuming and unfathomably painful. The meat of his body was melted away into searing hot lava.

So dark.

Moving was hard. Breathing was impossible.

He used the molten earth that had replaced his muscles to claw his way up. One hand in front of the other.

That was all he knew. The life he’d had, the memories of living on the surface were of a body that no longer existed. There was only darkness, heat and pressure.

He couldn’t hear Pent talking anymore.

Those eyes that had doomed him to those years of torment were like a distant dream, but here they were again.

They were getting closer, they seemed so smug. Gino was frozen.

“...and you know, I buried you once, so I’m sure I can do it again.”

Gino howled. He grabbed onto the front of their jacket and crushed Pent’s body into the pavement, slamming them with the immense force he’d used to pull himself out in the first place.

Pent wheezed in surprise, a smile of disbelief crossing their face.

Gino wrenched them up and slammed them back down again. And again. Still roaring, his body letting off a blistering heat that charred his clothes. Pent’s gloves caught alight as they weakly pried at Gino’s arms. There was smoke and dust rising from the broken concrete beneath them.

The crater he’d made started to drop inward of its own accord, and Gino froze. He edged back from the crumbling footpath, where Pent’s limp, seared body lay with an unfocussed stare, blood oozing from their skull. It finally caved in, revealing a cavity beneath, all remains disappearing into it.

He stood back for a moment, panting, staring at the gaping concrete as beads of molten sweat pierced holes through his shirt.

The volcanic man covered his face with his arm, trying to catch his breath again.

* * *

On his way back to the pizzeria, the chef felt the ground beneath his feet shudder, and an ungodly scream sounding in the distance.

Gay Spaghetti raced back as fast as he could, after all the walking he’d already done that day. One thing he had to admire about the human body is how enduring it could be, travelling such distances in some of his other forms would have been nigh impossible.

Not to mention, adrenaline is a hell of a thing.

He finally caught sight of Gino, and then the broken, smouldering abyss he was standing in front of.

“Gino!” he cried, making the other turn. “What’a happened out here?”

Gino huffed out a heavy sigh at the sight of the chef. “Thank fucking god. This… this was a goddamn mess. I just… shit, I’m not feelin’ so hot…”

“Well’a… you look just a bit’a  _ too  _ hot if I’m’a honest.” the chef remarked, noticing how burnt up Gino’s clothes were getting and how vividly he burned in them.

Gino laughed weakly, he could hardly stand straight, he’d been so exhausted by the whole encounter.

Spag’s attention seemed to drift and something behind Gino’s head brought a very worried expression to his face.

He didn’t have time to ask why. Gino was yanked backwards, two large arms wrapping around his chest. A pair of sooty, gnarled claws were burning from their sleeves, sinking into him as he struggled and screeched obscenities. The demon’s head was ablaze, their face appearing hollow with only two magenta points for eyes. Molten veins glowed through Gino’s skin and the fabric of his clothes as they turned ashen and melted off him.

The demon dragged them both back into the darkness, with Spag yelling out in alarm but unable to help - he’d be uselessly damaged from contact with their incredible heat that made the air ripple.

Their glow disappeared, deeper and deeper into the earth. The chef waited anxiously.

It was a while, Gino’s bitter howls being long since buried from his earshot. It was silent when the reddish glow returned.

Pent hovered in the air above the hole. Their gloves and cuffs were blackened, along with the piece around their neck. There were holes from where Gino had dripped onto them.

“Back where he belongs.” Pent growled with satisfaction.

Spag sobbed. He turned tail and ran.

Where his tears hit the concrete, moss grew. Where they fell between the cracks, flowers sprouted.

He was stopped in his tracks by a rough, hot hand on his shoulder. Pent spun him back around.

“You… you can manipulate life?” they were awed by the realization.

Spag whined helplessly.

“...You can bring her back.”


	6. nowhere

There was nothing. Nothing of him, nothing around him.

He was numb. Sightless, hearing nothing.

There was nothing to reach with. No hands, no feet, only space and space around. Nothing to hold any glimpse of a thought, any fleeting chance of a sound, or being.

Only a void that threatened eternity.

It had taken an eternity to get here, an eternity before time meant anything, before anything was. It was a seemingly endless place where only space existed, and Khonjin had waited to be. There were lights and stars, but within himself existed nothing.

And slowly, that nothing became something, and that something became alive.

His first experiences of living were of lying in a bed. The soft covers around him, lending him warmth, those were his first sensations, and the first time he'd had a roof above him. It was the first time he'd felt solid, grounded, at home.

And the first time he’d laughed, the static raising the hairs on his arms and the hair on his head and the funny feelings it gave him. The feeling of being clothed as Gilmore helped him dress. Being looked at fondly.

Rainy days were always the best ones, days when the sky was thick and heavy like a warm blanket and its cool grey seeped into every corner. It was right, it was good.

There was a pang of sadness in the wake of that world as it disappeared from him once more, or he from it. Now the void had taken it all back.

Empty, unable to resist, no body to resist with.

…

Strange.

There was nothing, but then, a soft, ovular light, like an aura. Someone stepped out.

Smack was lit by no clear light source, but glowed gently, a fuzzy line outlining his body in a soft gold. He’d borrowed some of Deja’s power to pursue Pent.

Admittedly, he was expecting a little more than this. He theorised that this must be some sort of intermediate place between one world and the next.

“No Pent then.” he observed, finding it odd how his voice sounded in this space, like he was talking into his own ear.

Smack paced around for a while, figuring out his next move. Walking didn’t take him anywhere, or didn’t seem to, seeing as there was no “anywhere” for him to go. Smack looked down at his boots as they walked over nothingness, white rubber against the stark black.

There had to be some way out of here, or Pent would still be there. Smack just needed to find a way through. Was there an opening to activate? Or broken into? Called upon? Would he be able to sense it? Hear it? Would he have to wait for it, or find it himself?

Or…

Something tapped his shoulder. Smack swivelled and raised his fists, jumping into a fighting stance.

“Uh, hi.” Khonjin waved sheepishly.

Smack lowered his gloved hands. The little man in front of him had bright red hair and a bumpy nose much like Pent’s, but otherwise looked nothing like them. His features seemed much softer, brows and lashes lined with red and eyes so dark they were completely indistinct. He was wearing the beginnings of a smart looking outfit, with a clean white shirt and black pants, however he was standing around in pizza-patterned socks.

After a moment of Smack not answering him, Khonjin cleared his throat. “I uh, you don’t happen to know about that other guy that just came through here, do you? Or is this… something else. I’m, I’m Khonjin by the way.” he added, extending a hand to him.

“Smack.” he nodded firmly, giving one good shake with a boxing mitt. “If you’re talking about Pent, then yes. What’s happened?”

“Um, I honestly don’t know. I have this, sort of, power…” Khonjin started.

“You’re an elemental.”

“Yeah, I make like, holes. No, like, like a black hole. My face just becomes a hole in reality. Usually it’s a very one way sort of deal, you know, whatever goes in doesn’t come back out. That was until recently and this guy kinda, crawled through me.” he shuddered at the thought. “Aeugh… And. I don’t know where I am now. I’ve never become completely absorbed by it before, I didn’t know it was p-p-possible.” he scratched his head.

“You have to be our way out then.” Smack confirmed to himself. “What usually happens after you’ve created a hole? How do you go back?”

“Well… normally, after I’m done freaking out my face just sorta, returns to the way it was.” Khonjin recalled. “I just calm down, and reality comes back to me. But, as I said, this isn’t like that…”

“Controlling your powers has a lot to do with state-of-mind.” Smack stated. “I can tell you’re rattled, what you need is to feel grounded and calm so you can bring us into your reality.”

“Okay…” he replied hesitantly.

“Take my hands.” Smack opened out his gloved mitts for him to hold, which Khonjin did reluctantly. “Having something to hold onto will make you feel more stable. Talk about something that makes you happy, something you’re looking forward to back in your reality.” he instructed.

Khonjin took a deep breath. “Alright, I guess… I’m looking forward to seeing Spag again, he’s pretty worried about me. He’ll be happy to see me well again, uh...”

“Then what?”

“We’ll go back to the pizzeria… and Gino will be there, and… and maybe, just maybe he’ll have made me a fresh, hot, pepperoni pi--”

There was a slurping noise as Khonjin’s head got pulled back through the darkness, falling out from the void-space. Smack held onto his hands tightly as he got sucked into reality once more.

Khonjin landed on the couch, with Smack sprawled on top of him.

Smack pushed himself upright to sit awkwardly on Khonjin’s abdomen, when he burst out in triumphant laughter.

“Oh shit, it actually worked!” he exclaimed.

“Wait, before we go out there, we need a plan.” Smack stopped him, before Khonjin got too far.

They untangled themselves to sit side by side.

Khonjin slapped his thighs eagerly. “What’s the plan then?”

“We have to stop Pent from destroying this world and bring them back to ours…” Smack rubbed his chin. “...Knowing what tools we have at our disposal will be invaluable. So you tell me everything you can about your powers, and I’ll tell you what I know.”

* * *

 

“I… I’a can’t…!” Spag whimpered. “I can make’a things grow, but I can’t bring’a someone who’s’a already dead back’a to life!”

“She is… she isn’t…” Pent mumbled to themselves, before grunting and shaking the chef by the shoulders. “Maybe you just haven’t tried hard enough! Maybe, with a little _motivation_.” they grinned wickedly, flame lighting up their gloved hands once more.

Gay Spaghetti cried in pain and tried to wriggle from Pent’s grip. "I can't! I can't help you!" he insisted, pleading.

Ignoring this, Pent drank in the chef's agony with sadistic glee. The scorching flames were making beads of sweat form on his marble face, dripping with tears. Vines uselessly twined and twisted around and around him desperately, aimlessly searching for release.

They listened to how his wails intensified, those flames burning hotter and brighter with each passing second.

“HEY! Let him go!”

Pent was thrown off guard, a huge, pulling force sucking the oxygen from their flames and wrenching the chef from their grasp. Khonjin caught him in his arms, stumbling and letting his boyfriend sink down in a heap.

“Kh-kh-khonjin…” was all he could utter between sobs.

“Jesus…” he hissed in sympathetic pain, noticing how bad the burns on the chef’s shoulders had gotten.

Not as bad as they could’ve been, at least.

“Mmm, what do we have here then?” Pent hummed, approaching slowly.

Khonjin glared defiantly at his alternate. “Don’t you dare lay another finger on him.” he barked, his body tensed, waiting for the attack.

“I created this world, I can do with it as I please.” Pent scoffed. “And _you’re_ certainly not going to stop me.”

“What makes you think that?” he scowled.

“Please, you don’t even know what you are, do you?” they shot him a cocky smirk. “I created this universe out of nothing, I set off the explosion that it’s made from. But when I disappeared from it, there was hole left behind, in my shape. Somehow, that shape became a deformed, ugly little man… that’s you.”

“You’re like the negative image of a poorly developed photo, you’re a stain in your own world. The only use you have here was to be an opening I could use to come back through. Because I am it's true creator, I create… and you destroy.”

Khonjin seemed to falter. “...Maybe you’re right, maybe you’re everything, and I’m nothing. You know, I’ve never… felt like I did that great a job of being a good human being, in the time that I’ve lived here. But you know what?”

“What?”

“At least I’m not a fucking asshole.”

Pent burst into cackles, doubling over and slapping their knee. “I-IS THAT THE BEST YOU’VE GOT?!” they howled. “That’s you’re big comeback? ‘At least I’m not an asshole’?”

“Yup. But also…”

“Khonjin, get ready!” someone called from behind them.

Pent spun in alarm, only receiving a faceful of water as Smack manipulated it, drawing it from the crater in the ground that had burst several water pipes. As the wave crashed over them, Khonjin summoned his void to suck all the heat out of the air and freeze Pent in a huge block of ice.

The two elementals cautiously examined the enraged god, trapped in a clear prison.

“...That was a lot easier than I thought it would be.” Khonjin admitted.


	7. Hot and Cold

“Now we have to get Spaggers some first aid. Or to a hospital. And then get you guys home.”

“I still have some of Deja’s energy left, and combined with your power to manipulate space it should be enough to pull us through.” Smack resolved.

“Good.” Khonjin nodded. “This was fun, let’s never do it again.”

“That will be arranged.”

A faint crackle and hiss startled them. The glass-like surface of the ice was splitting and giving way.

Smack held his breath.

It continued to crack, expanding as heat sputtered and fizzing in Pent’s frozen hands, eyes glowing anew.

Khonjin helped Gay Spaghetti move as far back from it as he could, shielding his body before the ice exploded outwards. An enormous fireball of incredible magenta flames burst into life.

It engulfed Pent completely, and then some. Khonjin had to squint through the flames to even see their body. He used his void to drain as much of the heat from the air as possible, but even that seemed to scarcely glance the unstoppable ball of fire.

On the opposite side, Smack was trying to use manipulate the water to shield himself and get closer to them but it was no use, the heat boiled it until the scalding water provided no protection at all and evaporated into the air.

“Pent! Pent, stop this!” his voice was barely audible over the roaring fire.

Pent was staring wide, but their emotion hard to read. They hung there, amidst their own storm, blackened with soot from head to toe. Pieces of their clothes were being torn from them. It was hard to tell, but Smack could swear they were burning away.

As tears dripped from their eyes, they were whisked off into steam. Smack could only watch.

Meanwhile Khonjin was pushing his way through the fire, reality distorting around him where he neutralised the heat, his arm held over his forehead as he staggered closer to its core.

“What the fuck are you doing?!” Khonjin screamed.

Pent’s voice was so hoarse and ragged, he could barely make it out. “ _I can’t… stop it…_ ”

“You’ll destroy yourself!”

“ _I can’t… go on without her…”_ they breathed. _“maybe I was meant to disappear too..._ ”

“Get a grip you _GODDAMN IDIOT!_ ” Khonjin cursed, grabbing them by the front of the shirt.

They made no resistance, heat whipping around them, limp with resigned acceptance. Now that he’d gotten to the heart of the inferno, Khonjin had no idea what to do next.

The rushing in the air was so intense he barely noticed the shuddering earth under his feet, until finally it split apart into a massive chasm, roaring as rock shattered and ground into pieces. They were both floating above the immense hole that had appeared beneath them.

An unholy howl bellowed from the depths, and an oozing, snarling beast climbed out. Blazing with a heat to contend the fire, pulsing with red-hot veins, glowing like hell.

With his face twisted into a wrathful, demonic expression like a gargoyle’s, Gino hardly looked like the same man who plodded around the pizzeria day to day doing menial chores.

The volcanic man caught hold of Pent’s waist as they dragged themselves up from the newly made chasm, using their weight to haul the three of them down into the dark. 

* * *

 

They were sinking, then as gravity took hold they were falling, then plummeting down through the long, deep pit melted out by Gino’s volcanic heat. They were a comet of raw energy shooting into the unseeable abyss, with Gino wrapped around Pent’s middle and Khonjin holding on around their chest, a smear of non-flammable void amongst magma and flame.

“I can still help you stop this…” Khonjin managed, clinging on tight and rippling with dark spots. “It’s not hopeless, even if it feels that way.”

“ _It’s too late… I can’t go back, not after everything…_ ” they rasped.

They hurtled deeper and deeper, the walls rushing around them, magenta light streaking off the ragged rock. It was taking Khonjin everything he had to keep drawing the excess heat from them.

As they fell, slowly but surely, that ball of flame began to flicker and dim.

“You can get out of this. I promise, there are people out there who can get you through… Just hold on, just a bit longer, I swear.”

“ _I don’t know if I can… I feel so weak…_ ” they whispered.

“I don’t blame you for that. I know it’s not easy, and I can’t even imagine how hard it’s been for you. But you’ll live, and one day, things really will be okay.”

“ _I’m so lost… I’m so… alone..._ ”

They fell in silence, Pent’s eyes slipping shut. They were reaching the very bottom, and the light had almost extinguished itself. Khonjin absorbed the gravitational forces making them drop so fast, slowing their pace until they floated gently to the very floor of the pit.

They tumbled apart.

Even Gino’s glow had died down to a soft simmer, even duller than usual. The life from his body had ebbed away while Khonjin was sucking the heat from the air and now it threatened to turn him to solid rock, his breathing shallow, barely distinguishable in the near-total darkness.

Pent was a harsh, black shape with embers in their hair. Khonjin did not have the nerve to examine the charred husk any closer, fearing what he might see, even in this light.

He couldn’t make out the opening of the pit from here, they were so far down. He was exhausted, for the first time in his life he felt well and truly exhausted. He knew that he’d no longer be able to call upon his powers, he was so drained.

He had no idea how they were getting out.

* * *

 

Smack found the first aid kit where the chef said it would be, and brought it back to the front of the pizzeria. He’d tended to all sorts of wounds before, so burns were nothing new to him, and they didn’t look good but luckily they probably weren’t enough for a trip to the hospital. At least it might leave some impressive scars.

Spag hardly flinched while he was being tended to, staying fairly quiet. He seemed occupied by other thoughts.

“Is… is there’a anything we can do to help them?” he asked softly.

“Hard to say. If the fire’s died down, I could send a stream of water to float them back up to the surface, or try to get a reading from the stream about the situation.” Smack explained. “However, if I’m not careful I may also end up drowning someone.”

Gay Spaghetti bit his lip. “It’s...it’s better than’a doing nothing, right?”

Smack offered him a small smile. “Khonjin is probably just fine, if that’s what’s bothering you. He’s one of the more powerful elementals out there. Pent is too, but they’re also… volatile, to say the least.”

He hopped off the barstool. “I’ll do what I can for them.”

Gay Spaghetti returned the smile. “Thank you.”

* * *

 

It was a while before the first few trickles of water began to make their way, all the way to the bottom of the pit. As it pooled around him Khonjin had to prop up the other two unconscious elementals to make sure they weren’t just inhaling it.

The level rose steadily, creeping up from his ankles to his knees. He could hear it grow from a burbling trickle to a heavier flow.

With one great, final heave it splashed down and flushed them out, the momentum carrying the three upwards in a great current. It was a dizzying journey up again, Khonjin couldn’t do anything but let it take him, through the pitch black, getting water in his nose as he spun through this reverse water slide.

He washed up on the street in a puddle. Khonjin spluttered, pulling himself up achingly. The street was ruined from the rampage that had ensued: flooded, cracked, with two deep pits, a contrast to the calm, cool colours of the early evening around them.

Smack helped him to his feet, and they both approached Pent where they lay still on the pavement.

They arched their back, coughing up water, shakily drawing up onto all fours. Damaged, but alive. Pent couldn’t stand at all and had to lean heavily on Smack for support, collapsing under their own weight. They were mumbling unintelligibly.

“Let’s not put this off any longer.” Smack told Khonjin.

“Good idea.”

Khonjin held his hand and that soft, golden aura appeared behind Smack, opening back into the other place.

“Thank you.” he had the barest traces of a smile on his lips.

“Oh, it was nothing--”

Leaning in, Smack planted the smallest kiss of gratitude on his cheek.

“..O-oh.”

And then, they were gone.


	8. The Universe

As soon as they’d left Gay Spaghetti rushed out towards him, practically crash-tackling the soaked Khonjin into a hug.

“Are you’a okay?! You’re not’a hurt anywhere are you?” he fussed.

“Y-yeah, I’m okay.” Khonjin was still touching his cheek, suddenly being fixed with an indignant glare.

“Oh. Well’a that’s’a fine then.”

“...Spag, you’re not upset about _that_ are you?”

“What? I’a dunno what’a you’re talking about. I’m’a not upset.” he pouted.

Khonjin snickered. “Wow, you’re even more jealous than I thought you’d be…”

Spag huffed in response.

“Besides, we still have a body on our hands.” he pointed out.

Gino was still lying motionless on the ground. Even in the fading light it was much more clear how bad the damage had been, his skin dull and bruise-like all over. As the two heaved him up, Khonjin noticed just how much heat had fled from his body, how much harder and rock-like he’d become. If it got any worse, he’d turn into a solid statue.

“Guess I really sucked the life outta him…” Khonjin commented, earning a grimace out of Gay Spaghetti.

“Wh, what are we’a gonna do?” the chef panted.

Khonjin scanned around. “We need to heat him up somehow…” his gaze landed on the pizzeria. “...hm.”

* * *

Being cold as a human being was uncomfortable and unpleasant. It makes you want to huddle up and keep still, containing as much of your warmth as possible. It saps the will from you.

Being cold as an elemental was agonising, like the very life was being drained out of him.

Gino couldn't stand it, but he couldn't have let go. Even if he wanted to, the molten blood in his veins had quickly turned to sludge as his heat was drawn from him, his muscles fixing him in place as they hardened. There was a crushing feeling in his chest as he struggled for breath and his head swam, deprived of the oxygen that might otherwise keep his embers burning.

He could feel his existence leaving him, his red hot core no match for the vacuum of space.

Other than that, the cold didn't bother him so much. The chill from that rainstorm had not penetrated his heat the way it would've when he was human. He'd wondered what else his elemental body could withstand, figuring that even running naked on a frosty winter's night may not deter him. This would have been his chance, to experiment, to see the world in a whole new way.

And yet, it was all drifting out. He was becoming heavy and hard and weak, fading, returning to the inanimate state of the rock that had swallowed him so long ago.

Gino could not hold his consciousness, blacking out, abandoned by his senses.

Growing cold, right through.

And dark.

For a time, there was only a numb, empty darkness.

The heat on his face was gradual, rising slowly. The first sensation to come back to him. As he absorbed it, finding himself able to breathe again, he snorted in a noseful of ash and choked profusely. There were hands on his back, cramming him into the small, hot space.

It was still dark, but Gino blinked, swearing he could see a fire. Not a magenta one, a normal one. 

“I think we can fit him in…!” Khonjin exclaimed, shoving Gino into the pizza oven.

“This was’a such a bad idea…” Gay Spaghetti muttered doubtfully.

“I didn’t see you coming up with anything!” Khonjin retorted.

Gino gasped and gagged, finally clearing his lungs enough to cry out.“GET THE HELL OFFA ME!” he protested, the two boys backing off as he pried himself free.

“Gino, you’re alive!”

He coughed, shaking the dust off his head. With the heat returning to his skin, it reverted back to its usual reddish glow.

“Looks like it huh.” he wheezed. “I was sure I was a goner too…”

Gino groaned, stretching out the residual stiffness from his limbs and shoulders. “What about that other guy…?”

“Dealt with. You won’t have to worry about them again.” Khonjin announced proudly.

“Khonjin’a saved us all!”

“And for that, I think I should be rewarded with, say… a pepperoni pizza?” he hinted slyly.

“ _C’mere ya lil’ shit._ ” Gino let out a round of rough, grating laughter and ruffled a slightly annoyed Khonjin’s hair.

* * *

Up on a cliff over the ocean, Gilmore and Gino convened, two illuminated figures glowing their respective lilacs and reds. The sky above was dark and heavy, between cracks in the silver clouds a golden sunset peered through. The scene was set with the sweet hushing of the ocean and the distant, murmuring grumble of thunder.

“It’s good to know everyone made it out in one piece.” Gilmore reflected.

“Yeah, takes a lot out of a guy, I’ll tell ya.” Gino griped, grunted and easing himself down onto the grass. “Shame about that “God” of yours too…”

“Hm?”

“Y’know, how it turned out this whole stinkin’ place was made by some snot-nosed kid, a complete fluke.” Gino clarified. “Nothing meaningful or important about that… I’d think it’d be a bit of a let down, huh?”

Gilmore chuckled and shook his head. “Not exactly. If anything, this just proves to me that there are bigger things out there, even than the known universe… maybe Pent was a part of that plan too.”

“...Guess that makes sense.” Gino sighed, letting himself roll flat onto his back. “I’m just… glad it’s over.”

Gilmore hesitated, before joining him down on the grass, sitting beside him. Gino observed the patterns in the clouds, drinking in their shifting colours, while Gilmore studied his expression.

“What do you make of it then?” Gilmore asked. “Does any of this make a difference to what you believe?”

Gino smirked. “Nah. I’ve always thought the world was all chaos and bullshit, that’s what makes the most sense ta me. I couldn’t convince myself otherwise if I wanted to.” Gino let themselves relax, their eyes falling shut.

“...fair enough.”

Soon, Gilmore followed suit, lying alongside them. The silence was filled by the sound of the wind, rushing over the cliffs and through the greenery around them. Clouds of Gino’s steam faded away into the atmosphere above, the occasional raindrop hitting their skin.

“...Thank you, again, for looking after him. I haven’t been there nearly enough…”

“Pssh, don’t worry about it too much, y’ can’t always help that. Hard to imagine raising the kid on ya own would be that easy either… maybe he needs two dads.” As soon as the realisation of what he’d implied hit him, Gino started mumbling with embarrassment. “I, I mean, y’know, not like… a couple necessarily… uh…”

Gilmore couldn’t help but laugh at how Gino’s face glowed. “I don’t mind dear. I’d be happy for you to help me with him, either way.”

He let a gloved, ghostly hand wander over to brush Gino’s. There was a comfort in their warmth, and Gino didn’t mind the way Gilmore’s static prickled over their skin either.

A small, bashful smile crept across the volcanic elemental’s features as they lay there together.

“I’m so glad I found you.” Gilmore said softly.

“Y-yeah, me too.”

“Daaaad! Gino!” a voice called out from down the hill, footsteps crunching through the grass towards them as they sat upright to see.

Khonjin and Gay Spaghetti Chef were running up the hill, Khonjin throwing himself at his father the moment he got close enough.

“Ah, my boys.” there was a smile in Gilmore’s eyes, the chef kneeling beside them as Khonjin laughed, his hair standing up on end. “You were both so brave, I’m proud of you for looking after each other.”

“Awh dad…”

“I was just’a doing my best.”

“C’mon Spaggers, get in here!” Khonjin reached out to pat his back and draw the chef into the hug too.

Gino watched in amusement, until Khonjin called to them: “You too, Gino!”

The elemental rolled their eyes.

“Come on’a Gino, it’s not’a the same without you!” Gay Spaghetti persuaded.

“You’re one of the boys now, Fettuccine.” Gilmore joked encouragingly.

“Alright, you win.” Gino relented, scooching in.

The family of mismatched elementals laughed and embraced up on the cliff, under an overcast sky as the colours of sunset turned pinks and oranges between silver fluff. Gino’s heat would keep them warm, long into the evening.

Maybe this was the world he belonged in after all.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I'll probably have more stuff up on my tumblr relating to this AU, and I might even do a few little works on the side.
> 
> I've been posting other doodles and drawings of this particular AU over here > https://cantusemyfuckingdickanymore.tumblr.com/tagged/kh-elemental-au
> 
> again, thank you for reading!


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